Lucknow: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav’s aggressive attack on the BJP over the alleged theft of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has triggered an unintended political consequence, with old videos of senior SP leaders questioning the existence of the Ram Janmabhoomi and backing the firing on ‘Kar Sevaks’ surfacing on social media and placing the party in an uncomfortable position in the run-up of the 2027 assembly elections.While the party was trying to tackle this sudden surge in video onslaught, posters, carrying photographs Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh alongside provocative slogans linked to the Ram Temple movement and Kar Sevaks came up at several places evoking sharp reactions from SP workers. A number of such posters were torn by them at several spots in Gorakhpur and other places.Since June 7, Akhilesh has been relentlessly targeting the BJP, RSS and VHP over the donation theft controversy, making the issue a key plank of the opposition’s attack on the ruling party.He was among the first opposition leaders to raise the matter publicly and has continued to flag it through social media posts and media interactions.However, as the controversy gathered momentum, videos of SP founder and former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and senior SP leader Prof Ram Gopal Yadav began circulating widely.In one of the videos, Mulayam Singh, speaking in Parliament during the Ayodhya dispute, is seen referring to archaeologists who had questioned claims about the existence of a Ram temple at the disputed site.In another clip, Prof Ram Gopal Yadav is heard making similar assertions during a parliamentary intervention.Political observers say the resurfacing of these videos has complicated the SP’s efforts to craft a broader narrative around the donation theft issue.”The party wants to corner the BJP on alleged irregularities linked to the Ram Temple Trust, but the circulation of these old videos allows its opponents to question the SP’s historical position on the Ram Janmabhoomi movement itself,” said a political analyst.An SP functionary close to Akhilesh admitted that the party leadership is aware of the risks associated with aggressively pursuing the issue.”The moment Akhilesh adopts a more confrontational line, more such videos could surface. The BJP and its supporters are waiting to remind voters of the SP’s past positions on Ayodhya,” the functionary said on condition of anonymity.The dilemma is not entirely new for the SP. In the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections also, party leaders were forced into damage-control mode after posters depicting Akhilesh as a pro-Muslim leader and recalling the legacy of “Mullah Mulayam” appeared in parts of Uttar Pradesh.Political observers view the current controversy through the same prism.”The SP has spent considerable effort over the last few years shedding the perception that it is a party representing only one community. Akhilesh’s temple visits, outreach to Hindu religious leaders and calibrated positioning on faith-related issues have been part of that strategy. The resurfacing of these old videos threatens to reopen an ideological debate the party would rather avoid,” an observer said.Another SP leader from western Uttar Pradesh acknowledged that the party faces a delicate balancing act.”If the party aggressively pursues the donation theft issue to appeal to a larger Hindu constituency, there is always the risk of confusing or alienating sections of its traditional support base.At the same time, remaining silent allows the BJP to dominate the narrative,” the leader said.Observers describe the situation as a classic Catch-22 for Akhilesh Yadav. While the donation theft allegations present an opportunity to attack the BJP on issues of accountability and transparency, the SP chief must simultaneously navigate the baggage of his party’s historical positions on the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.”It explains why Akhilesh has been measured despite repeatedly raising the issue. The attack has largely been limited to questions of governance, accountability and trust management rather than broader ideological challenges linked to the temple movement,” a political commentator said.The caution is visible within the party as well. While Akhilesh continues to raise the issue, few SP leaders have matched the intensity of his criticism, reflecting concerns that an overly aggressive campaign could backfire.Observers further point out that the controversy also intersects with the SP’s broader PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) strategy, which helped the party secure a record 37 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh in 2024.”The PDA formulation enabled the SP to broaden its social coalition.Any perception that the party is either abandoning that narrative or making an overt Hindutva pivot could create contradictions within its carefully cultivated electoral strategy,” an analyst said.With the Ram Temple donation theft issue continuing to dominate political discourse in Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh’s challenge will be to sustain pressure on the BJP while preventing the debate from shifting to the SP’s own past positions on Ayodhya — a terrain on which the party remains considerably more vulnerable.
